At the Edge of Chinatown

At the Edge of Chinatown is an explosive new musical about third-culture kids who must remix the old world to build their own. It proves that sometimes the most powerful form of preservation is fearless reinvention. Featuring a contemporary score that fuses traditional Asian instruments with punk rock energy, the piece explores how identity is not inherited. It is forged.

Simon Tam is a musician, author, and composer whose work bridges performing arts, community-based activism, and storytelling. As founder and bassist of The Slants, he helped spark a national conversation on identity and civil rights. He also won a landmark unanimous U.S. Supreme Court case that protected free speech for minority communities.

Joe X. Jiang is a musician, composer, performer, and award-winning filmmaker and visual artist, known for his innovative work across alternative rock and performance.

For more than two decades, LaGuardia Performing Arts Center’s Rough Draft Festival (RDF) has offered a first public look at bold new theatrical work in development, serving as a proving ground for writers and performance-makers in Queens while remaining deeply connected to New York City’s wider creative ecosystem. Running March 10–19, 2026, the festival brings audiences, artists, and the field into the room at the moment when big ideas are becoming buildable theatre.

This year, LPAC will present five works-in-progress selected through a highly competitive review process led by a panel of arts professionals from across New York City’s creative community, as well as one returning artist. Together, the 2026 slate reflects a wide range of voices and forms, from choreopoem to musical theater to experimental performance, offering audiences an early look at stories being developed with ambition, craft, and urgency.

Rough Draft Dates and Times:
March 10 @ 7pm - Mama/Run by Lester Mayers
March 12 @ 7pm - At the Edge of Chinatown by Simon Tam & Joe X Jiang
March 13 @ 7pm - 108 Notes by kanishk pandey
March 14 @ 7pm - The Life and Times of Daisy Forbes by Scout Davis ⭐️
March 18 @ 7pm - RYBA-KIT | A Musical Folktale by Nadiya Atkinson & Sammy Grob
March 19 @ 3pm - Roadkill by Libby Carr
March 22 @ 7pm - The 24-Hour Plays
⭐️ Returning Guest Artist

Ticketing: Free for Students/$10 General Admission | RSVP/Tickets
Festival Pass: $50 for the entire festival
Location: LaGuardia Performing Arts Center (LPAC), LaGuardia Community College, 45-50 Van Dam Street, Long Island City, Queens
Press RSVP: theresa.buchheister@gmail.com